DHL joins Amazon in testing drone delivery

A quadrocopter drone controlled remotely transports a post package during a test flight for the Deutsche Post DHL in Bonn, western Germany. The Deutsche Post tests a system for delivering urgent packages via drone over short distances. (Patrik Stollarz, AFP/Getty Images)

FRANKFURT, Germany — It’s not just Amazon. German express delivery and mail company Deutsche Post DHL is also testing the potential for delivery drones.

DHL’s small pilotless helicopter flew a package of medicine Monday from a pharmacy in the town of Bonn to the company’s headquarters on the other side of the Rhine River. DHL’s drone can carry up to 6.6 pounds and could be used to deliver urgently needed goods to hard-to-reach places.

Company spokesman Thomas Kutsch says the flights are strictly a research project and that the company has no plans to launch drone delivery any time soon.

On-line retailer Amazon is also working on a drone to deliver goods to customers despite legal obstacles in the U.S.